Learning to Swim
by abetternameneeded
Summary: Alice and Robin spend the day at the beach. Robin teaches Alice how to swim.


Robin and Alice walked along the shore line. Robin had told Killian where they would be so there was no risk of them accidentally causing him any pain, or death. The waves crashed gently over their feet.

"It's pretty!" Alice told Robin, her level of excitement far beyond what Robin's was. Nothing out of the ordinary. To Alice, the entire world was exciting. From the biggest realm to the smallest grain of sand. She had spent so much of her life locked away in a room inside a tower. She hadn't experienced as much of the world as most people. And she rarely made it out to the ocean. Her papa could die if she got to close and he was a former pirate. So she stayed away from him and the beach near his rebel camp. This was her first time at this beach-or any beach-with Robin.

"Do you want to swim?" Robin suggested.

"What?" Alice asked laughing. Sometimes people would say things and she would have no idea what they meant

Robin blinked. She knew what swimming was. But never in her life had she expected to need to explain it to someone.

"It's where you get in the water and move around?"

"Okay."

Robin got into the water and sat down water touching her heavy leather garments. That was going to smell later., Robin thought. But in order to teach Alice something? Worth it.

Alice tapped her foot while she watched Robin. She couldn't stay still for long.

"Okay so swimming is basically this" Robin showed Alice. Alice got into the water. The waves crashing into her as she sat down. As she started to mimic what Robin had shown her a small wave crashed into her face, water going into her mouth and up her nose. She coughed. "Am I getting sick again?" Alice asked. Robin laughed remembering when she had to explain what a cough was to Alice.

"No, Alice, you're just not supposed to get the water in your mouth. So you cough to get it out." Robin called that a good enough explanation she wasn't quite sure how to explain why you weren't supposed to get once water in your lungs. "It's okay, try again?"

It took a few tries but eventually Alice got it. They spent a while swimming. Alice stopped at some point and sat in the water and just touched it. She gently pushed it toward Robin and laughed.

Robin pushed a bit of water back to her. Eventually they were in a full on water fight both laughing and running around in the ocean splashing each other as much as possible.

Robin gasped for some breath after laughing so much. She threw herself onto the shore "Okay, okay! You win, tower girl." she said as she sat up

Alice laughed and sat down next to her. As the sun started to make it's way to descend, Robin leaned over and kissed Alice. "We should go," she sighed. "It's a bit of a walk."

Alice nodded. They headed back towards camp hand in hand, stopping and kissing every so often. Their clothes and hair dripping water on the ground as they walked. Once they were halfway there they came to a stop. They couldn't risk going too much closer. Robin spun Alice around and leaned in for a final kiss for the night. They broke apart and as Alice was walking away Robin shouted behind her "Be careful, Alice."

"I'm always careful," Alice said with a wink that brought no extra comfort to her words. "See you, Nobin."

Robin walked back into camp and sighed. She wished Killian could have seen his daughter learn how to swim. She wished that he could have been the one to teach her. A long time ago. The man used be a pirate for gods' sake. She'd have to tell him when she saw him next.

The next day when Robin saw Killian working on writing his letter to Alice for the next time they saw each other she approached him. "Hey, Killian."

"Hey, lass, how was your date?" Robin had a slight blush. "It was great! We went swimming. Alice seemed to enjoy it"

"Swimming, aye? I wonder when she learned to swim."

"Yesterday, I taught her."

"Well, thank-you. Fancy it'll serve her well in some of those bloody adventures she gets up to."

Robin nodded. "I think so."

"I miss her." Robin knew he missed Alice horribly. She had heard enough stories from Alice to know that he was always a good papa that Alice missed just as much as he missed her.

"She misses you too. She'll find a cure. I've been helping. She's determined."

"Aye, lass." Robin said her farewells and walked away finishing her trek back to her house. It wasn't too terribly far from the camp. When she got back to her house she walked inside and leaned against the wall. It had been a good day for the most part.

Zelena saw Robin,

"You looked like a drowned rat, what happened?"

Robin rolled her eyes, "Thanks, mom." she replied with a hint of sarcasm. "I taught Alice how to swim today."

"And you went swimming in that?" Zelena asked gesturing to the now soaked through leather clothing.

Robin nodded. It maybe wasn't the best idea in hindsight.

"I'm going to go change." she told Zelena who nodded. Robin went into her room and threw on much drier clothes and squeezed her hair dry with a towel.

Alice walked back to her cabin in the woods and shut the door behind her. She changed out of her damp clothes and sat down to write. She began writing a letter to her papa about how Robin taught her how to swim and the walk along the beach. And that he should defintley watch the sun go down there because it was quite lovely.


End file.
